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SILICON VILLAGE

Wednesday, October 17, 2018

A Public Awareness Campaign Will Be Launched with the Aim of Increasing Awareness of Sudden Cardiac Arrest by Engaging 10,000 People Including Public and Civil Services PersonnelMedtronic plc, declared a partnership between India Medtronic Private Limited, its wholly owned subsidiary in India, and Cardiological Society of India 2018 (CSI 2018) to drive awareness and training to perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), also simply known as ‘a technique to revive heart and lungs’, in public places. The training aims to increase awareness about managing the first few crucial minutes after someone has suffered a sudden cardiac arrest by performing CPR and automated external defibrillator (AED) usage. The two organizations announced a partnership in Mumbai on ‘World Restart a Heart Day’ - 16th October 2018. The partnership document was signed by Omar Ishrak, chairman and chief executive officer of Medtronic and Dr. Prafulla Kerkar, organizing secretary, CSI 2018 and head of the Department of Cardiology at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.The CSI 2018 conference scheduled in Mumbai in November 2018 will be a pilot project which will aim to teach CPR techniques to 300 participants including public and civil services personnel from police, fire brigade, municipality and healthcare fraternity, to be trained by using a mannequin or dummy.In a first from a medtech company, Medtronic aims to conduct several such nationwide trainings and engage with more than 10,000 people in phase one, especially the ones who operate in public places and are typically the first point of contact for people suffering an out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest. During the training, attendees will be trained to spot a sudden cardiac arrest, provide hands-only CPR and revive the victim within minutes.Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is an electrical problem of the heart that triggers a dangerously fast heart rate (ventricular tachycardia) or irregular rhythm (ventricular fibrillation). If not treated immediately, SCA can be fatal. Signs of SCA include unconsciousness and irregular or no breathing. Ninety-five percent of those who experience sudden cardiac arrest die because they do not receive life-saving defibrillation within 4 to 6 minutes, before brain and permanent death start to occur.2,3“Sudden cardiac arrest is a serious public health issue, particularly in emerging markets like India where lack of public awareness can further complicate issues,” said Omar Ishrak. “No one single organization can tackle this issue alone. Together with CSI 2018, we have the opportunity to help improve awareness of sudden cardiac arrest and train more people to provide life-saving care in the moments that matter most—it’s a reflection of our ongoing commitment to working in partnership with others to improve patient outcomes.”Dr. Prafulla Kerkar said, “There is no clear data available in India; but through studies and by extrapolation, it is estimated that the annual incidence of deaths due to sudden cardiac arrest are around 13 lakhs in the country. Our goal is to teach everyone to act in an emergency - to identify the symptoms and take action. Anyone could be the hero by saving a Sudden Cardiac Arrest victim’s life in a public place and give them hope of a new life, post a life-threatening incidence. People do not act in emergency situations because of lack of training and fear of doing something wrong. For every minute that elapses after sudden cardiac arrest, the chances of survival diminish by 10 percent. We are thrilled to be collaborating with Medtronic as this is the first time a medical technology company has partnered with CSI 2018 in driving awareness at such a large scale.”Adding to this, Madan Krishnan, vice president and managing director, Medtronic Indian Subcontinent said, “Through the partnership with CSI 2018, Medtronic aims to achieve faster delivery of CPR, which more than doubles the chance of survival for a sudden cardiac arrest victim. By increasing awareness of Sudden Cardiac Arrest and engaging more people in learning to perform CPR in our community, we can substantially increase the survival rate of cardiac victims. Our vision also aligns with government’s focus on improving healthcare access to diagnosis, treatment and recovery for non-communicable diseases in India.”